Leaders who embrace their full humanity are better equipped to lead others. In a world obsessed with performance metrics and bottom-line thinking, it’s easy to overlook the most transformative leadership tool available — self-awareness. In a recent episode of The Bliss Business Podcast, co-hosts Stephen Sakach and Mike Liwski sat down with Stacey Estrella, co-founder of Mastering Your Human Design, for a conversation that pulled back the curtain on what it really takes to lead with empathy.

Stacey’s path to purpose-driven leadership has been anything but conventional. From competing on Project Runway to facilitating immersive brand storytelling events, her journey is marked by continual reinvention. But it wasn’t until she discovered Human Design — a system that integrates elements of astrology, chakras, and quantum physics — that everything truly clicked.

What she found wasn’t a mystical shortcut, but a deeply grounding framework that gave her permission to stop performing and start leading as her whole self. “It allowed me to release everything I’m not,” Stacey explained. “And when you do that for yourself, you can’t help but do it for others. That’s where real empathy begins.”

Self-Awareness: The Leadership Superpower

Throughout the conversation, Stacey made one thing clear: there’s no shortcut to empathetic leadership. It begins with radical self-acceptance — the willingness to look at your strengths, your flaws, and even the decisions you regret through the lens of understanding rather than judgment.

“When you can love on all those decisions — especially the ones that make you cringe — you unlock a kind of emotional elasticity,” she shared. “It creates space to connect with others from a place of compassion rather than control.”

The data backs her up. A Korn Ferry study found that leaders with high self-awareness are significantly more effective, in part because they are better equipped to manage their own emotions and understand the perspectives of others. It’s the foundation of emotional intelligence — and emotional intelligence is a key driver of performance.

Empathy is Not Weakness — It’s Strategic

Mike pointed to a Harvard Business Review study showing that companies scoring highest on empathy indices outperform their peers by 50% in profit generation. The takeaway? Empathy isn’t a nice-to-have. It’s a competitive advantage.

But as Stacey warned, empathy without boundaries can lead to emotional burnout. “You can’t confuse feeling with carrying,” she said. “Empathy means being present with someone’s experience — not absorbing it as your own.”

This is where Stacey’s work with Human Design comes into play. It helps leaders differentiate between their own energy and the emotional energy of others, enabling them to support their teams without sacrificing themselves in the process.

Leading With Empathy in a Digital Age

Stacey also reflected on the role of technology in fostering or eroding human connection. “I never want technology to come between me and a client,” she said. “I use AI to learn — but not to create. That’s a line I draw because it keeps the work human.”

Instead, Stacey sees technology as a tool to support meaningful one-to-one interactions — not replace them. It’s a mindset more organizations will need as automation becomes increasingly prevalent.

The Future of Business is Personal

Perhaps the most powerful insight Stacey offered was this: the organizations of the future will succeed not by standardizing people, but by recognizing and optimizing their differences.

“When leaders start with empathy and build from the individual up, they create cultures of trust and resilience,” she said. “That’s when teams move beyond productivity and into purpose.”

Her advice for businesses looking to stay ahead? Replace rigid efficiency models with systems that prioritize well-being and human wholeness. “We’re entering an era where love will be the cornerstone of successful business,” she said. “And that starts with how leaders show up for themselves and their people.”

Final Thought

Leadership isn’t about being everything to everyone. It’s about being fully yourself so you can see — and support — others in doing the same. As Stacey reminded us, empathy begins within. And when leaders operate from that place of self-awareness and authenticity, they create organizations where people don’t just perform — they thrive.

Check out our full conversation with Stacey Estrella on The Bliss Business Podcast.

Originally Featured on The Bliss Business Podcast Blog